Scientists from Shanghai Academy of Agricultural Sciences recently announced that they have mastered a technique able to preserve the pig fetus at an extremely low temperature of -196??. One of the sows gave birth to 10 piglets after being conceived through 28 fetus preserved with the technique, and 8 of them survived the birth.
According to a briefing, the key to the preserving technique is realize an instant temperature reducing effect, using the socalled vitrification technique. Scientists explained that pig fetus would become very sensitive when temperature came down to 15?? or less. The fetus will die very easily, if it cannot quickly go through this dangerous temperature zone.
Scientists planted the vitrification fluid and the fetus into a special tube filled with liquid nitrogen. The tube can produce a temperature reducing effect at 20,000?? per minute. The vitrification process forges a state between liquid and solid, and temperature reducing can turn liquid into a solid state, which can hurt the fetus. To address the problem, a vitrification freezing fluid is used to make the fetus in a ?°glass state?±. Last April, 28 fetus preserved with the technique were transplanted into sows. The conceived sow gave birth to 10 piglets in the early August this year. The survived 8 piglets are currently growing well. Scientists are keeping a watchful eye on their well-beings. |
